Fort Lee releases dispatch tapes from GWB traffic jams

Feb. 28, 2014

Written by

KATIE ZEZIMA

Associated Press

FORT LEE, N.J. — A New Jersey town has released hours of dispatch tapes from the week in September when a traffic jam engineered by Gov. Chris Christie’s aides clogged streets near the George Washington Bridge.

The traffic jams occurred from Sept. 9 to 13 in Fort Lee. Town officials have said they caused unnecessary delays for first responders. A 91-year-old woman died, but her family has said they don’t believe the traffic was a factor in her death.

The dispatch tapes reveal frustration over the traffic, with one official saying that traffic was a “nightmare.”

Dispatchers relayed information about a 4-year-old who went missing from a local school. The child was later found safe.

An Associated Press review of tapes from a neighboring town show the traffic appeared not to cause poor medical care.